For nearly two years, Century Aluminum has been searching for a site to put a giant new U.S. smelter — a decision that largely hinged on where it could strike a deal with utilities to access cheap, reliable electricity.

On Monday, the Chicago-based manufacturer finally unveiled its plans. Rather than build its own power-hungry facility, Century is partnering with Emirates Global Aluminium to jointly develop a smelter near Tulsa, Oklahoma, the

companies announced

. The facility will be America’s first new aluminum smelter in nearly half a century if completed as planned by the end of the decade.

“

Together we will make a huge contribution to rebuilding American aluminum production for the

21

st

century,” Abdulnasser Bin Kalban,

CEO

of the Abu Dhabi–based

EGA

, said in a statement.

Century had previously identified

northeastern Kentucky as its preferred location

for a $

5

billion smelter, though the company was also evaluating sites in the Ohio and Mississippi river basins. In

2024

, the Biden-era Department of Energy

selected Century

to receive up to $

500

million to build a

​

“

green” smelter powered by

100

% renewable or nuclear energy.

Century didn’t immediately return Canary Media’s questions about the status of the federal award or how energy issues factored into its decision to join forces with 

EGA

.

Aluminum production contributes about

2

% of greenhouse gas emissions globally every year, and the majority of those emissions come from generating high volumes of electricity — often derived from fossil fuels — to power smelters.

Emirates Global Aluminium

first proposed building

its own Oklahoma smelter last May. Up until this week,

EGA

and Century seemed to be racing each other to fire up their new facilities. The fact that the companies teamed up reflects how difficult it is for manufacturers to secure power at the volumes and prices they need, not only in the United States

but globally

— a challenge

that’s getting even harder

with the competition from

AI

data centers.

Building a smelter

​

“

is very expensive and very complicated, so I take it as good news,” said Joe Quinn, who leads the Center for Strategic Industrial Materials for

SAFE

, which advocates for policies to enhance U.S. energy security.

“

There was a scenario where both could have failed,” he added.

​

“

But now they’re getting together, and I think that strengthens the likelihood of a new smelter being built in the United States.” He said the news was

​

“

a little surprising, but then again not that surprising” given the challenges of opening a multibillion-dollar greenfield smelter.

Under this new agreement,

EGA

will own

60

% of the joint venture and Century will own the remaining

40

%. The Tulsa-area facility is expected to produce

750

,

000

metric tons of aluminum per year, an amount that is

25

% larger than previously envisioned — and more than double the current U.S. production of primary aluminum.

A facility that massive will require over

11

 terawatt-hours of power, or enough electricity annually to power the city of Boston or Nashville, according to an

Aluminum Association report

.

America’s output of the versatile metal

has sharply declined

in recent decades, in large part owing to rising industrial electricity rates. Today, the country operates just four smelters — down from

33

 in

1980

— and it imports about

85

% of all the aluminum it needs each year. At the same time, the U.S. is using more aluminum in solar panels, power cables, infrastructure, and electronics. By

2035

, U.S. demand for primary aluminum is expected to rise by as much as

40

%, the advocacy group Industrious Labs

said in a report

last year.

Annie Sartor, Industrious Labs’ senior campaigns director, said that

​

“

two smelters would have been ideal” for boosting U.S. aluminum production.

​

“

One is better than none, but neither can succeed without affordable, clean power,” she said in a statement.

Construction on the Oklahoma smelter is set to start by the end of this year, the companies said. Negotiations are still underway with the Public Service Company of Oklahoma, which is a subsidiary of utility giant

AEP

, and the state of Oklahoma to secure a competitive, long-term power contract.

Last year,

EGA

signed a nonbinding agreement to build its proposed smelter with the office of Republican Gov. J. Kevin Stitt, a deal that includes over $

275

million in incentives, including discounts for power. Oklahoma’s

​

“

energy abundance” was a key factor in selecting the state for the new aluminum smelter, Simon Buerk,

EGA

’s senior vice president for corporate affairs, previously

told Canary Media

.

More than

40

% of Oklahoma’s annual electricity generation comes from wind turbines spinning on open prairies, while about half the state’s generation comes from fossil-gas power plants. Last summer, the Public Service Company

acquired

an existing

795

-megawatt gas plant south of Tulsa to meet the rising energy needs of its customers, potentially including

EGA

.

Buerk said last year that the Oklahoma smelter’s annual power mix

​

“

will be based on

EGA

’s decarbonisation objectives, market dynamics, and market demand for low-carbon aluminum.” He didn’t immediately return Canary’s request for comment on Monday.

The news that Century Aluminum is investing in Oklahoma comes as a major letdown for some environmental and labor groups in Kentucky, who had advocated for bringing the project to their state. Century already owns two aging smelters in western Kentucky, and the new facility was supposed to create thousands of construction jobs and more than

1

,

000

permanent positions — jobs that will now go to Oklahoma.

“

This is a disappointing loss for Kentucky, but it should serve as a wake-up call,” Lane Boldman, executive director at Kentucky Conservation Committee, said in a statement.

​

“

For Kentucky to remain an energy leader and meet the needs of industries looking for reliable and affordable power, it must modernize its energy infrastructure more quickly, such as grid modernization, energy storage, and diversifying with renewables.”

Maria Gallucci

is a senior reporter at Canary Media. She covers emerging clean energy technologies and efforts to electrify transportation and decarbonize heavy industry.

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